Academic Achievement
by i-really-heichou
Summary: AU: Levimika. Levi is a librarian and Mikasa is a local university student.


He had a paper back cracked open at the spine against his legs with his feet neatly crossed on top of the desk. He turned the page gingerly, soaking in each printed word with the upmost interest. Every so often, Levi's glasses would travel down the bridge of his nose and he would brusquely push them back to their rightful place with his middle finger.

He had the company of his books and found that to be a better use of his time rather than any human interaction when he could bear to avoid it. The library was relatively silent with a couple of soft whispers surfacing in the back corner from a tiny blonde girl and her much taller, freckled companion. Every so often, Levi would cast a bitter glare over his shoulder to which the blonde would flush and gently chastise her girlfriend who would boast that she had every right to talk as she pleased seeing as though they were the only ones there.

Midterms ended the day before at the University of Sina-much to Levi's relief-and many of the students celebrated their newfound freedom by staying as far away as humanly possible from the library which had served as an intellectual prison for the last two weeks. Nevertheless, there were still stragglers filing in every couple of hours, offering Levi their overdue textbooks with downcast expressions. Levi had established a reputation for verbally lashing at those who spoke a fraction too loud or failed to bring in their books in on time. Hanji, his ever-so-energetic superior cautioned him last week after he made a freshman cry, stating that his job was on the line if Dean Smith caught another word if his aggressive work habits. To his dismay, his veteran benefits couldn't cover everything therefore he needed the job.

So he physically bit his tongue as he collected a World Philosophy book from the hands of a dark haired boy with contrasting green eyes. "You haven't happened to see a girl, yay high-" The boy gestured to the top of his head, "-black hair, dark eyes? She's been here since ten."

The kid in front of him had a moronic look in his eyes as if he assumed Levi would actually help him track down his girlfriend. He had conjured about several hundred different insults, yet they were all erased when he replied with a self-restrained but clipped, "No".

The boy stood there with a nervous expression striking his face until he realized he had been standing in front of the desk for a minute too long. Quickly, he scurried off towards the exit like a puppy with its tail in between its legs.

He caught sight of her an hour later, meandering aimlessly throughout the archives. Levi watched her split image over the rims of his glasses. The girl plucked through the books at a rate that would make any librarian cringe at the sight. She hoisted her growing selection in her arms with ease, anchoring the books in her hands with the bottom of her chin. Levi rested his book in front of him and fought the urge to roll his eyes. Not only did he have to work on a Saturday, he had to share the space with high climbing overachievers.

The dark haired girl gently placed her pile of books on Levi's desk and dug her hands in her coat pocket for her school I.D. Much to Levi's surprise, the girl had a trashy romance novel that topped her stack of reading. He had mistakenly read the novel after assuming its urban fantasy cover aligned with the actual plot of the story, only to be disappointed in finding out that it was just another cheap trick at a poorly designed love story. He could write better than that if he ever found the time (and inspiration, although he would never admit to that).

"She dies at the end," he said rather flatly, pushing the book across the scanner. The girl blinked at him unfazed, and later shrugged her shoulders. "Figures. The author is mediocre at best."

Silence passed between them. The girl did not cower in fear of his intimidation. She merely shifted her gaze between the books he checked out and his own eyes. Levi was partially insulted and wholly intrigued by her calming presence.

"I'm pretty sure your idiotic boyfriend was looking for you earlier." It was a poor attempt at small talk. Levi was only half way through the books the girl decided to check out and it would be polite and less painful to exchange a few words. He noticed a blush had stained her cheeks and the way she drove her chin into her tattered, red scarf.

"He's my brother," she murmured in response, focusing on the bookshelves behind him. "_Adoptive brother." _

"Interesting," was all he said, never letting go of the sight of her peculiar reaction. Levi slapped the last book on top of the pile and slid her student I.D. across the space between them. "Have a nice day-" his eyes flitted down to where his fingers still held the card,"-Mikasa Ackerman."

Mikasa swiped her card from his grasp and wielded the books she needed for her next research paper.

"You too, Sir."


End file.
